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July Steel Movement Up at Port

While total inbound/outbound shipping was slightly lower in July compared to June, movements of steel and steel products into the Tulsa Port of Catoosa increased.Reductions were related to seasonal demand for certain products and likely not an indication of any further slowing of commerce. The total amount of barge cargo handled through the Port for the first seven months of this year is nearly the same — 1,229,606 tons compared to 1,282,147 for the same period last year.Inbound shipments of steel and grain in July were higher than their June levels. But outbound shipments of dry cargo were lower last month, as were outbound shipments of liquid bulk products, accounting for the drop in total inbound/outbound shipping at the Port, from 136,184 tons in June to 129,071 in July.“We’re pleased to see increased shipping of steel and steel-related products through the Tulsa Port of Catoosa,” said Ed Fariss, chairman of the City of Tulsa-Rogers County Port Authority. “This generally indicates an increase in industrial activity, which is good not only for us but for the economy as a whole.”Comparatively speaking, the 129,071 tons of barge cargo moved through the Port last month is equivalent to about 5,320 big rigs. If parked end to end, they would form a line of trucks 60 miles long.The McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System – which stretches from the Tulsa Port of Catoosa to the Mississippi River – handled 963,130 tons of freight in July. The Tulsa Port of Catoosa handled 13 percent of that total.